Essay: What it is like to attend a Trump rally from the press pit

President Trump held a rally to help Troy Balderson win the 12th congressional seat for Ohio in the upcoming special election. It was held in Delaware County, Ohio, where I grew up. So, I had to attend.

It was hot, 95, and humid. Walking in I saw two women pass out from heat exhaustion. The EMS said that dozens had done this and that they had lost count. Yet, thousands of people stayed outside to watch the rally from a large screen.

Inside, they had a spare gym as another overflow room. In total, 5,000 people watched the President, someone from the Secret Service estimated.

I spoke the entire time with the man from CNN who overseas the traveling operations. When the crowd chanted, “CNN Sucks”, the CNN reporter was standing next to me. It was not Jim Acosta, however.

Rep. Jim Jordan made an appearance to huge cheers. The crowd chanted, “Speaker of the House”

These Trump rallies are like rock concerts. Few entertainers could fill the seats that he does. The populist movement is showing no signs of dying down.